Evaluation, Academic Honors, & Advanced Placement/Waivers

Course/Instructor Evaluation

Each student is responsible for providing constructive evaluation of each course, clinical rotation, and instructor in the curriculum. Year 1 and Year 2 course evaluations must be completed within five business days after each course ends. Evaluations for all clinical rotations must be completed within 30 calendar days following the end of the rotation. All evaluations must be current before a student can register for the next semester. For clinical year students, no official transcript will be released until course evaluations are up to date.

Academic Honors

It is a tradition at the Health Science Center to recognize its highest scholars and promote academic excellence. Academic honors are noted on the student’s official permanent record. Academic honors are awarded with the degree at graduation to the highest 10 percent of the graduating class.

The Dean’s List for semesters 1 through 4 recognizes medical students whose weighted averages make up the highest 10 percent of each class enrolled in the college. Numeric course grades, based on a 100% scale, will be used to determine the top 10% of the class. Numeric course grades (unless otherwise specified by the course syllabus) will be converted to letter grades for recording on transcripts, with A= 90 – 100%; B = 80 – 89%; C = 70 – 79%; F < 70%. The distinction of President’s Scholar is awarded to graduating seniors who have been named to the Dean’s List for semesters 1 through 4 of enrollment in TCOM.

No graduate will be named to the Dean's List or receive a degree with honors who has failed a course, who has not been enrolled as a full-time student, or who has been placed on academic, disciplinary probation or suspension. Transfer students are not eligible for academic honors.

Class rank will be calculated at the end of Years 1, 2, and 3. Class rank will be calculated from the cumulative weighted numeric grade averages from each class completed during the prior and current reporting period (i.e. class rank at the end of year 2 will include cumulative data from years 1 and 2). Final class rank will be calculated from the cumulative weighted numeric grade averages from each class completed during years 1 and 2, plus the cumulative weighted numeric scores attained on the end of rotation standardized examinations for each of the core clerkships completed during year 3. The top 10 % of students will be determined from the final class rank.

Advanced Placement/Waivers

Requests for advanced placement or waiver for any course must be declared by the medical student on the first day of enrollment at the Health Science Center. The student must then present all supporting documents to the Office of the Registrar. The student is required to attend all classes and take all examinations until a decision is made regarding the advanced placement request.

To be placed in advanced standing, a student must have taken a course judged to be equivalent by the appropriate academic department or course director within two years before the first day of classes and awarded a minimum grade of "B," or have completed a similar course and obtained a minimum grade of "B" in a written comprehensive examination given by the department or course director for this purpose before the student's program begins at the Health Science Center. TCOM does not award advanced placement or waivers for experiential learning or noncredit courses.

The decision regarding a request for advanced standing will be transmitted in writing to the student by the dean of TCOM, who will also notify the registrar and the appropriate department or course director. Courses for which advanced standing is granted are assigned a transcript designation of "CR" and are not calculated in the cumulative weighted average.